Pleasure-railway.



W. F. MANGELS. PLEASURE RAILWAY. A APPLICATION FILED NOV. 11, 1908.

925,81 8, Patented June 22, 1909.

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ATTORNEYS W. P. MANGELS. PLEASURE RAILWAY.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 11, 1908.

925,81 8. Patented June 22, 1909.

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UNITED STATES WILLIAM F. MANGELS, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

PLEASURE-RAILWAY.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 22, 1909.

Application filed November 11, 1908. Serial No. 462,019.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM F. MANonLs, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of New York, Coney Island, borough of Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented a new and Improved Pleasure-Railway, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

The object of the invention is to provide a new and improved pleasure railway, for use in pleasure resorts, exhibition grounds and other places, and arranged to enable the passengers of a vehicle to assist in propelling the power-driven vehicle, thus providing an exhilarating and healthy ride for the passengers, and permitting several vehicles driven uniformly by power to race, the hand power supplied by the passengers being the determining factor of the race.

The invention consists of novel features and parts and combinations of the same, which will be more fully described hereinafter and then pointed out in the claims.

A practical embodiment of the invention is represented in the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views.

Figure 1 is a plan view of the improvement arranged with two tracks, one alongside the other; Fig. 2 is an enlarged inverted plan view of one of the ears; Fig. 3 is a sectional side elevation of the same on the line 33 of Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is a sectional side elevation of art of the car and showing more particuarly the hand power mechanism in a different position; Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the track at the junction of the power portion and the non-power portion; Fig. 6 is an enlarged transverse section of the car, the section being on the line 66 of Fig. 3; and Fig. 7 is a similar view of the same on the line 77 of Fig. 3.

The pleasure railway, as illustrated in Fig. 1, is provided with two practically continuous tracks A, A, arranged one alongside the other, on which travel the ears B, B wholly independent one of the other, in the direction of the arrow at. The tracks A, A consist of the non-power sections A A and the power sections A, A", respectively, and at the nonower sections A A are arranged stations C for the passenger to embark and disembark in and from the cars B, B, respectively, the said track sections A A being also provided with suitable brake mechanism D for braking the cars on the homestretch. The non-power track sections A A are preferably of narrower gage than the power track sections A A and the terminals of the nonpower track sections A A project a short distance between the rails at the terminals of the power track sections A, A as plainly shown in Fig. 1, and alongside the said power track sections A*, A are arranged the third rails E, E having their terminals opposite the terminals of the non-power track sections A A The cars B, B are alike in construction and each is provided with shoes F for engagement with the third rails E, E, the shoe on each car B or B being electrically connected with an electric motor G mounted on the car and carrying on its shaft G a pinion H in mesh with a gear wheel H secured on the driving axle I of the car B or B.

On the car axle I are arranged the fast car wheels J and the loose car wheels K, of which the fast car wheels J are adapted to travel on the power track sections A (or A") and the loose car wheels K are adapted to travel on the non-power track sections A (or A and hence when the cars B, B pass from the sections A A onto the power track sections A, A then electricity is transmitted by the brushes F from the third rails E, E to the motors G, to actuate the latter with a view to propel both cars B, B by power. When the cars B, B pass from the power track sections A, A onto the non-power track sections A A then the electric power for the motors G is cut out, as the brushes F move out of contact with the third rails E, E, and the cars now travel by their own momentum or by the aid of attendants, back to the stations 0, C.

In order to insure a roper connection and disconnection of the s oes F and the third rails E or E at the time a car B or B enters the power track section A*, A or leaves the 1 same, I prefer to reduce the loose wheels K relative to the fast wheels J and correspondingly raise the rails of the non-power sections A A, as will be readily understood by reference to Figs. 5, 6 and 7. The cars B, B are provided near the front with trucks L having wheels with double treads for travel and driven from the gear wheel H on the track sections A A or A A (see Fig. 2).

On the car B (B) is arranged a centrifugal governor N of any approved construction by a pinion N secured on the shaft N of the centrifugal governor N. The movable member N of the governor N is provided with a shifting collar N engaging a switch lever P (see Fig. 6) for connecting or disconnecting the shoe F and the motor G. The governor N is arranged to electrically disconnect the shoe F and the motor G whenever the car B (or B) runs at a speed exceeding the normal predetermined speed, that is, the power to the motor G is cut off whenever the car exceeds the normal predetermined speed, and at the time the car travels on the power section A (or A of the track.

On the outer ends of the driving axle I are secured crank arms Q connected by pitmen R with longitudinally-extending links S, pivotally connected with the ends of levers T fulcrumed on the car, and having transversely connecting bars T (see Fig. 6) extending in front of the seats U, so that the passengers seated on the seats U can take old of the cross bars T of the levers T and impart a swinging motion to the said levers. In doing so the levers move the links S forward and backward, whereby the pitmen R are actuated and by the crank arms Q turn the axle I, thus providing a manually-controlled propelling mechanism for the car, to assist in propelling the latter forward in addition to the power-propelling means connected with the axle I, as previously explained.

From the foregoing, it will be seen that the passengers in the car B (or B) can exert their physical power by actuating the levers T, so as to assist in propelling the car whenever the latter travels on the power track section A (or A and in case the car exceeds the normal speed then the power-controlling mechanism is cut out by the action of the governor N, and the car moves forward with its own momentum and the power supplied by the passengers actuating the levers T. Thus if two cars starting at the same time from the stations E and E and pushed by attendants onto the power track sections A A are propelled forward at the same speed by the power-propelling mechanism, t en as the passengers in the two cars can exert their physical powers by actuating the levers T it is evident that one car may be propelled faster than the other, thus providing a race between the two cars over the adjacent tracks, the hand power supplied by the passengers being the determining factor of the race.

It will be noticed that if the car exceeds its normal rate of speed the power is cut out, and thus the car travels over the tracks without using up the electric motive force for the time being, thereby insuring economy in the case of electric motive force.

The tracks may be practically arranged on the level ground, sufficient raise being given to one track in case the tracks cross each other, as indicated in Fig. 1, and the power track sections A A preferably terminate a distance from the stations C, C, so that the car has spent its momentum at the time it reaches the station 0 (or C), to permit of readily bringing the car to a full stop by the use of the braking mechanism D located in the tracks and of the usual construction.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. A pleasure railway comprising a vehicle, power propelling means for propelling the said vehicle, means for cutting out the said power propelling means on the vehicle reaching a redetermined speed, and manually-control ed propelling means for assisting the said power-propelling means in propelling the vehicle, to accelerate the speed of the vehicle beyond the said predetermined speed at which the vehicle can be driven by the said power-propelling means.

2. A pleasure railway comprising a vehicle, power-propelling means for propelling the said vehicle, and manually-controlled propelling means for assistin the said powerpropelling means in propelling the vehicle, to accelerate the speed of the vehicle beyond the maximum speed at which the vehicle can be driven by the said power-propelling means.

3. A pleasure railway comprising a vehicle, motive power propelling means for propelling the said vehicle, an automatic controller on the said vehicle for cutting out the motive power of the said propelling means on the vehicle reaching a predetermined speed, and auxiliary propelling means on the said vehicle under the control of the occupants of the vehicle for assisting the said motive power propelling means in propelling the vehicle to accelerate the speed of the vehicle beyond the said predetermined speed at which the vehicle can be driven by the said power-propelling means.

4. A pleasure railway comprising a continuous track having a power section and a non-power section, a car adapted to travel over the said track and having power-propelling means rendered active on the car traveling over the said power section of the track, and rendered inactive on the car traveling over the non-power section of the track, and a manually-controlled repelling means on the said car and under t e control of the passenger, to assist the powerpropelling means in propelling the car.

5. A pleasure railway comprising a track having a power section and a non-power section, and a motor car having a power-driven 'nection between the said axle rovided with fast and loose car wheels, of W ich the fast car wheels are adapted to travel on the said ower section of the track and the loose car wlleels are adapted to travel on the non-power section of the track.

6. A pleasure railway provided with a car having seats, an electric motor on the said car, a gearing connecting the motor with one of the car axles, a crank on the said axle, hand levers in front of the said seats, a conhand levers and the said crank arm, shoes on the car for supplying electricity to the said motor, a track for the car to run on, and a third rail for en gagement by the said shoes.

7. A pleasure railway provided with a car having seats, an electric motor on the said car, a gearing connecting the motor with one of the car axles, a crank on the said axle, hand levers in front of the said sheets, a connection between the said hand levers and the said crank arm, shoes on the car for suplying electricity to the said motor, a track or the car to run on, and a third rail for enga ement by the said shoes, the said third extending but a distance along the track.

8. A pleasure railway comprising a track having a power section and a non-power section, a car adapted to travel on the said track, a third rail alon the said power sec tion of the track, an e ectric motor on the said car and geared with a driving car axle, brushes on the car for engaging the third rail and connected with the said motor, and a hand power mechanism on the car and con nected with one of the car axles, the said mechanism being under the control of the passengers for assisting in propelling the car.

9. A pleasure railway comprising a track having a power section and a non-power sec tion, a car adapted to travel on the said track, a third rail along the said power section of the track, an electric motor on the said car and geared with a driving car axle, brushes on the car for engaging the third rail and connected with the said motor, a handpower mechanism on the car and connected with one of the car axles, the said mechanl ism being under the control of the passengers on a driving car axle,

l l t l and a govassisting in propelling the car,

the speed of ernor on the car for controlling the said motor.

10. A pleasure railway comprising a track having a power section and a non-power section, a car adapted to travel on the said track and having first and loose car wheels the fast car wheels being adapted to travel on the power section 01' the track and the loose car wheels being adapted to travel on the non-power section of the track, a third rail along the said power section of the track, an electric motor on the said car and geared with a driving car axle, brushes on the car for engaging the third rail and connected with the said motor, and a hand power mechanism on the said car and connected with one of the car axles, the said mechanism being under the control 01' the passengers for assisting in propelling the car.

11. A pleasure railway comprising a track having a power section and a non-power section, a car adapted to travel on the said track and having fast and loose car wheels on a driving car axle, the fast car wheels being adapted to travel on the power section of the track, and the loose ear wheels being adapted to travel on the non-power section of the track, a third rail along the said power section of the track, an electric motor on the said ear and geared with a driving car axle, brushes on the car for carrying the third rail and connected with the said motor, a hand ower mechanism on the car and connected with one of the car axles, the said mechanism being under the control of the passengers assisting in propelling the car, and a governor on the car for controlling the said electric motor.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

WILLIAM F. MANGELS.

Vitnesses MARoUs O. ILLroNs, CHAS. N. BREWSTER. 

